Date Day
by Lilly Dolittle
Summary: Avengers Family EP01: It's 'date' day for Steve. A day to rejuvenate. A day to remind himself why he does what he does. Very fluffy so be warned.


Steve Rogers adjusted his jacket in the window before entering The Avenger's Tower in New York. He was looking forward to today; it would be a nice break from all the missions he had been on lately. He had thought when he had woken up 70 years in the future that the world was a strange place. However, in the last few years the world had gotten stranger and stranger. It was always nice to be reminded what they were fighting for; that there was still good to be protected. It was all too easy to lose sight of the good, when facing evil all the time.

Heading up to the living area, he waited in the lobby for his 'date'. It was not long before she came down the stairs, looking beautiful in her yellow sun dress. White Mary Jane shoes, a matching purse, and her hair in big curls completed the look. It was a stark contrast to the dark suit and tight pony-tail worn by one Pepper Potts who followed her down.

"Well don't you look lovely today." He smiles.

"Thanks." She said as she twirled to show off the dress. "Uncle Toney helped me pick the dress, and Aunt Pepper did my hair." Announced the excited five years old.

Crouching eloquently down, so she was at the child's level, Pepper fixed her hair as she spoke: "Now you be good for your Uncle Steve, ok Lila?" The child nodded. "And have fun."

"Love you!" The child gave her a big hug before taking Steve's hand, then the two were off.

Their first stop was the Brooklyn Children's Museum. He might not be a Tony Stark, a Bruce Banner, nor a Jane Foster, but with her he didn't need to be; he just had to be Uncle Steve who was willing to roll up his sleeves, and play.

He remembered visiting the museum as a child himself, but boy had the place changed. It was not even in the same building. For a moment it reminded him of all he had lost during his long sleep, until an excited little hand pulled him to one of the exhibits.

For hours they played, and learned; stopping only to take in a 'show' or 'lecture'. He tried to ignore the whispers, gawking, and people trying to stealthily take pictures of him. It was not uncommon for things like this to happen, but it still made him uncomfortable. He wondered what the tabloids would print when he noticed one man taking a picture of him as he tried on a costume hat handed to him by Lila. It just so happened that it was a ladies hat with lots of feathers.

He had thought about refusing to wear the hat; of explaining to the child that men didn't wear feathery hats. Then he remembered a time, not so long ago, when this child hadn't known how to play; hadn't known how to have fun. She knew the hat was ridiculous; just like the one she was wearing. It's what made it fun, and funny. If he could wear a star-spangled-banner uniform to fight evil, then he could wear a feathery hat for her.

"Excuse me." He stopped one of the museum staff that was supervising the activity. "Would you mind?" He asked as he showed the woman his camera phone.

"Not at all." She smiled.

As they posed for a few pictures, all Steve could thing was that if nothing else Stark would get a laugh at his expense.

When the little one started to tire from the museum, their next stop was an ice cream parlour. It was a nice change. Although the museum was fun, it didn't lend itself to conversation. Sitting in the little restaurant, enjoying some sundaes, the two could talk… and talk she did.

"… then Mila said it was her turn to play with the crayons, but I wasn't done my picture. Miss. Doll said the pictures were going to go on the board, so I had to finish."

Steve nodded, totally engrossed on the intrigue of Miss. Doll's kindergarten class.

"I said we could both use the crayons, but there was only one seat at the colouring table."

"Oh no! What did you do?" He encouraged her.

"Well Mila said maybe we could colour on the floor. It was a good idea. But when we moved all the crayons to the floor, we lost the blue. I needed the blue for the clouds."

"So you weren't able to draw clouds in your picture?"

"Oh no. I drawed clouds, but the clouds are purple. Do you think that is ok?" She asked with all the seriousness of a five year old.

Steve thought about it for moment.

"I think purple clouds would be very pretty. Purple would definitely make your clouds different than anyone else's."

"Yea!" She said with a big smile on her face.

By now they had finished their ice cream, and were leaving the shop when Steve thought to ask.

"Why was it so important to finish the picture that day?"

"Oh, for the bring-your-daddy-to-school day."

Although she said it as a matter of fact, something clenched at Steve's heart. Stopping on the sidewalk, he turned the child to face him, and kneeled down so he was closer to her height.

"Lila, you know your daddy would have been there if he could have made it." He knew it was true. The life of an Avenger was not an easy one. Sacrifices had to be made; and it wasn't always the members of the team making those sacrifices.

"I know." Really the child didn't sound upset. "Mommy and Daddy had to go save the world again. But…" Now she hesitated and was starting to look worried.

"What is it? You can tell me anything." He encouraged. She just looked around at the people passing them on the street. It was New York, so there were a lot of people; and being famous, there were also a lot of camera.

"Maybe not here." He conceded.

Grabbing the child's hand, the two quickly weaved their way through the crowds, until Steve spotted a little gated park he knew well. The park was a little bit of peace among a city of chaos.

Resting on one of the park benches Steve turned to the child.

"What is bothering you?"

"Well at school, I heard one of the parents say something. I think they were being mean, but I didn't really understand it, so I don't know."

"What did the person say?" He asked patiently.

"Well Mrs. Davis asked Mrs. Mantel if daddy was going to be at the bring-your-daddy-to-school day, and Mrs. Mantel said 'no'. Then Mrs. David said… she said it wasn't like mom and dad were my real parents anyways."

Steve's heart broke a little at hearing such callousness from an adult.

"What did she mean by 'real parents'?" The little one asked with genuine curiosity.

"Well…" He started to explain, but was finding it difficult to articulate how narrow minded some people could be. "… Ok… You know that sometimes when a man and a woman love each other, they create a baby. And that baby grows in the mommy belly."

The child nodded her understanding.

"Well that means that the child in her tummy is genetically related to the parents. They are a mom and dad because they created the life… the baby. Your mommy and daddy didn't come by you that way."

"I know," she interrupted when he paused. "They found me in my dungeon."

"Your parents told you about that?" He smiled sadly, wondering how that conversation would go.

"No, I remember the dark room." Nope; Steve's heart had not broken before, it was breaking now.

"You remember? Oh child!" He didn't know what to say.

"It's ok Uncle Steve. I like remembering." The child was smiling; not at all fazed by the bombshell she had just dropped on the old soldier. "The day mommy and daddy found me was the bestest day ever. It was the first day I ever heard music."

He couldn't help but smile as his own memories of that day came forward.

"Do your parents know you remember?" He asked, trying to confirm a suspicion he had.

"No." She answered with a frown. "They used to get so sad when I would talk about it. I don't want them to be sad."

Reaching over, he gently grabbed the little girl, and cuddled her into his side.

"You are a good girl Little Miss Lila."

Her "I know" had him laughing out loud.

"So because I am not genidcly like mom and dad, Mrs. Davis doesn't think they are really my parents?"

"Some people don't understand how others can love a child that is not theirs… or not from them." It was hard to find the right words to explain this; because, although she was not born from them, Lila was definitely her mom and dad's child. "And some people say thing that are mean or cruel because they don't understand."

"That makes me sad." She looked up at him with big eyes.

"Well people can be cruel, even adults."

"Not that!" She corrected quickly. "It makes me sad that Mrs. Davis doesn't know what a 'real' family is. I mean there are probably like a LOT of people who could be in her family and love her, but because she doesn't know what a real family is, she doesn't let them."

"Yes that is a reason to be sad." He agreed with her.

"But she shouldn't be mean. That is wrong." The child said firmly, and with the determination only a child can muster.

"What was wrong." He agreed again with her; this time desperately trying to old in the laughter at her very serious, very angry expression.

With the conversation over, and the child's questions answered. The two made their way back to the Avenger's Tower.

Pepper was there to greet them when they made it up to the living floors of the building.

"Hey bug." She grouched down to accept a hug from the child. "You two have a good time?"

The child soon was talking excitingly about her adventures with Uncle Steve at the museum.

"Steve, you staying for supper?" Pepper asked, when the child paused.

Thinking of all the work he had to do, all the reports he had to read before his mission tomorrow, he was about to politely decline. Then he thought about the conversation the child and him had had in the park.

"Sure, sounds like fun." He decided.

The child whooped and ran off to tell her Uncle Tony that Uncle Steve was staying.

"Great." Pepper was calmer with the news. "I will make sure to double our order." She teased as she got on her phone.

Following the heavy metal music down the hall he stopped and took in the scene in front of him. The floor was covered in machine parts, DUM-E was handing a part to Lila, which she then helped Tony place on something more complicated than he could understand; all the while telling her uncle all about her day… in detail.

Yea, it was a weird family; with an arrogant billionaire, a Norse god, two assassins, a giant green rage monster, and the 'more normal' ones. Most people might not get them, but he was never more happy to be a member of this family.


End file.
